Ex shadow chancellor Ed Balls steps up for Strictly Come Dancing.

Chris Maxwell

Former Shadow chancellor Ed Balls is taking a fresh step in a career away from politics - after signing up for Strictly Come Dancing.

The ex Labour MP, who lost his seat in the 2015 General Election, will be strutting his stuff on the latest series of the smash hit BBC 1 show.

The 49-year-old admits he is 'scared to death' of making the move from debates to dancing in front of millions of viewers but says it is still a 'dream come true'.

Mr Balls is the first name to be officially announced for the star-studded show.

Mr Balls lost his Morley and Outwood seat during a crushing defeat for Labour last May.

Now he has set his sights on winning the support of voters on the dance stage.

He says his wife, Labour MP Yvette Cooper is backing his career move.

Speaking on Chris Evans' Radio 2 breakfast show, he said: "Making a speech in Parliament seems a piece of cake compared to this, but hopefully I can stick around for a couple of weeks, and have a lot of fun in the process.

"Strictly is a firm favourite in our living room, and it feels like a dream to be going on myself, especially for Len's (Goodman) last series. I'm just hoping it doesn't turn into a nightmare too quickly!"